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Welcome to the David Victor Vector blog. This is blog that covers religious observances around the world international affairs and global business. This blog describes religious holidays for most major religions as well as raising issues dealing with globalization, international business ethics, cross-cultural business communication and political events affecting business in an integrated world economy. I look forward your discussion and commentary on these articles and subjects. Enjoy!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Eid al-Adha 2016

In 2016,on the evening of Monday, September 12 concluding on the evening of Tuesday, September 13 at sunset, (depending on the sighting of the moon) marks the beginning of the three days of the Moslem holiday of Eid al-Adha or the Festival of the Sacrifice. Students, staff and faculty should be accommodated for observance of the holiday. Some debate exists as to whether the holiday should be marked by when it occurs over Mecca or when it occurs in the location in question (for instance, North America). For some, therefore, the holiday may begin on September 13 at sunset. I take no stance on this, and am merely stating that some differences may exist in interpretation.Dating the Holiday

The holiday actually begins every year on the 10 Dhu al-Hijjah in the Islamic calendar. However, since the Gregorian calendar (the one used in the secular United States) is a solar calendar and the Islamic calendar is a lunar one, the date of Eid al-Adha (as with all Moslem holidays) appears to travel within the Gregorian calendar.

About Eid al-Adha

Eid al-Adha is Arabic for the Festival of Sacrifice, and is named in remembrance of the readiness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son. In the Koran (37:99–111), the son whom Ibrahim is willing to sacrifice is not named; however, in Islamic tradition, the son is believed to be Ismail (Ishmael), not (Ishaq) Isaac as in the Jewish and Christian versions of the story. In Islam, both sons are considered prophets.

Another name for the holiday is Eid al-Kabir or the Greater Eid (in contrast to the earlier Eid al-Fitr, the Lesser Eid that marks the end of Ramadan). Eid al-Kabir is the name more commonly used in North Africa, Yemen and Syria. Because of this, in French, the name of the holiday is Aid el-Kebir. In Turkish, the holiday is called Kurban Bayrami and as a result, the holiday is called by some variant of Kurban in many of the languages of those nations formally under the rule of the Ottoman Empire including Kurdish, Albanian, Serbo-Croatian and Azeri as well as borrowed from the Turkish in many other languages including Russian, Pashto, Sindhi, Kazakh, Farsi, Pashto and Tatar.

Association with the Hajj

Eid al-Adha also marks the end of the Hajj to Mecca (Makkah). The Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, required of every Moslem once in his or her lifetime. For this reason, the holiday is sometimes called the Festival of the Hajj (Hari Raya Haji in Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia).

Three years ago in 2013, the Saudi government began to set greater restrictions for the number of pilgrims. This resulted in the first substantial decrease in numbers. In 2013 pilgrims stayed away due to worldwide fears of the deadly MERS outbreak on the Arabian Peninsula coupled with Saudi governmental fears regarding the Ebola outbreak (the Saudi government banned pilgrims from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, effectively preventing 7400 Muslims scheduled to come from those nations). This saw the number of pilgrims fall to just 1.98 million (with 1.38 million from outside Saudi Arabia). Even greater restrictions followed so that 2014 was among the
smallest pilgrimages in years: 1.4 million from abroad and 700,000 from within Saudi Arabia.

This decline was notable since the number of pilgrims had consistently risen before the 2013 concerns. Indeed, the 2012 hajj was the largest in history, according to the official Saudi Ministry of Hajj, with 3.2 million people participated in the pilgrimage. For each year, the number of visitors had marginally though steadily grown (for instance, 2.8 million in 2010; 2.9 million in 2011).

Last year's hajj in 2015 saw much greater numbers of pilgrims. While there were still fears over MERS, Saudi concerns regarding the Ebola outbreak had lessened notably. As a result, in 2015, the Hajj saw 2 million pilgrims. While this represented an increase of 600,000 visitors, this was still far short of the figures reached before Saudi authorities began placing greater restrictions on the number of visitors.

Unfortunately, the increased number of pilgrims coupled with inadequate crowd control resulted in two disasters: the Mecca Crane Collapse and the Mina Stampede. First on September 11, 2015 in the days leading up to the hajj, a crane collapsed on a crowd of worshippers, killing 111 and injuring scores of others. The crane, ironically, had been working to improve the safety of Mecca's Grand Mosque. Far worse, though, came during the 2015 hajj itself. At approximately 9:00 AM on September 24, 2015 for reasons still not clear, pilgrims began to stampede. The uncontrolled crowd panicked and when it had subsided, at thousands of pilgrims had died from suffocation or being crushed or trampled to death. The figure provided by the Associated Press and Al-Jazeera was 2177 dead. Iran's government announced that over 4700 people had died (although they provided no evidence for their claim). http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/10/19/hajj-disaster-death-toll-over-two-thousand.html

Nature of the Hajj

The Qaabah

The Hajj itself runs for five days, starting on the 8th of Dhu al-Hijjah (that is, beginning two days before Eid al-Adha begins) and continues through the end of the Eid on 12 Dhu al-Hijjah. The Hajj involves many rituals and special prayers, and this overview makes no effort to fully describe them. Among the most notable of these is the Tawaf. The Tawaf is the counterclockwise circling seven times of Islam’s holiest site, the Qaabah (or Kaabah). The Qaabah is a large granite, cube-shaped structure which Moslems believe that Ibraham and Ismail built together after Ismail moved to Mecca. The Qaabah is covered with black silk and gold.Inside the Qaabah is the Black Stone (al-Hajr al-Aswad) which is the focal point of the Tawaf. Many Moslems believe that the Black Stone was given to Adam and Eve to tell them where to build an altar. The Black Stone was then placed in the Qaabah by Abraham and Ismail. The Black Stone was already an object of worship when the Prophet Mohammed first visited it and kissed it. Following the Prophet’s example, pilgrims traditionally kissed the Black Stone on each of the seven circuits around the Qaabah. As the throngs of pilgrims grew, this has largely become impossible so today the pilgrims point toward the stone with their hand as they near it. The movement of the pilgrims during the Tawaf is felt to symbolize the unity of ummah (the community of all believers) as they worship the unity of Allah.

Another important ritual is the Ramy al-Jamarat or Stoning of the Devil. Islam views the sacrifice as a test of Ibrahim and Ismail. During this test, Moslems believe that both Ibrahim and Ismail were tempted by Shaytaan (Satan). Ibrahim and Ismail threw stones at Shaytaan, and this is re-enacted by pilgrims at the Hajj in the ceremony of the stoning of the jamarat. Pilgrims throw pebbles at three pillars in Mina, each of differing size and symbolically representing Shaytaan’s temptation of Ibrahim, Hagar (Ismail’s mother) and Ismail to stop the sacrifice.

While the pilgrims on the Hajj are at the center of the most significant observance on the Eid al-Adha, it is by no means limited to them alone. Indeed, Moslems the world over celebrate Eid al-Adha. On the Eid, Moslems bathe in the morning and then traditionally dress in their best clothing before going to the mosque for special prayers. The services usually conclude with a khutba (or speech) with a spiritual message usually encouraging those listening to give up any grudges or ill will. After this, it is customary for worshippers to hug one another and to wish one another a Happy Eid.

Eid al-Adha Traditions and Food

In most traditions, believers, if (they can afford to do so) sacrifice an animal (usually a goat or sheep, although traditions vary) in commemoration of the animal God provided to Ibrahim for sacrifice in place of his son. Indeed, in West Africa the holiday is called Tabaski after this sacrifice. (For a video of Eid sacrifices on Tabaski, please see http://jangawolof.wordpress.com/2007/12/19/happy-tabaski/ ). Where animals are sacrificed, the meat is shared with others, particularly those who are less fortunate.Many Moslems also donate food of all sorts – not just the sacrificed animal -- to the poor on the holiday.

Sheer korma

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Traditions vary somewhat around the world for Eid al-Adha. In Pakistan and India after special morning Eid prayers, Moslems traditionally eat a dish called sheer korma.

Sheer korma is a mix of sweet milk, dates and vermicelli. Later in the day, South Asian Moslems also often eat dishes made from the sacrificed animal, with mutton biryani (sheep with saffron rice), mutton korma (sheep stew) and kofta (meatballs in special gravy).

Moroccan boulfaf

In Morocco, the post-prayer breakfast is customarily herbel (wheat porridge with sugar, milk, honey and orange-flower water). The main meal of the day usually includes lamb, especially boulfaf (grilled lamb liver kababs).

Bosnian Lonac

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, people traditionally follow morning services with a large lunch of Bosnian lonac (vegetable and meat stew made in a clay pot), dolmas (stuffed onions with paprika) and sarmas (stuffed cabbage). This is usually followed by sweet desserts such as baklava.

USPS first Eid stamp (2001)

In the United States, traditions greatly vary with people often dressing in clothes and eating foods from their ethnic origin. Eid al-Adha, as with other Islamic holidays, has received greater public attention in recent years. In 2001, the US Postal Service began releasing Eid stamps (covering both Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha).

In 2003, George W. Bush was the first President to publicly wish Happy Eid from the White House. This tradition has continued under President Barack Obama.

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About Me

David A. Victor, Ph.D. is a business professor, author and consultant. He is Director of International Business Programs at the Eastern Michigan University College of Business where he is also a tenured Full Professor of Management. He teaches courses in business communication, business ethics, international business ethics, international business, and international management. Dr Victor’s book International Business Communication (Harper Collins, 1992) was the first book published on the subject in the United States. Dr. Victor is also a business consultant and co-founder of the non-profit organization One Village One World.

More About David Victor's Academic Experience

I teach at the Eastern Michigan University College of Business I am also editor of the Global Advances in Business Communication. http://commons.emich.edu/gabc/

Among other subjects, I teach Managing World Business Communication, Fundamentals of Global Business, international business ethics, international business, Business Ethics/CSR, and International Management as well as a series of "Doing Business In..." seminars for business in specific countries and regions. My course at EMU in Managing World Business Communication first designed and taught nearly 20 years ago was among the first regularly taught on cross-cultural business communication in an AACSB-accredited school.

From 1996-1997, I was President of the Association for Business Communication and helped to establish the European and the Asia/Pacific regions of that organization. In 2010, I was honored to have won the Meada Gibbs Outstanding Teaching Award, an international prize given by the Association for Business Communication. Over the years, I have received 6 grants from a variety of sources including the US Department of Education and the Federal Government of Canada. .

In 1992, I was the first recipient of the Distinguished Visiting Foreign Professorship (Graduate Level) of the InstitutoTecnologico y EstudiosSuperiores de Monterrey. I was also a Visiting Professor at the University of Antwerp in Belgium in 2008 and at the Universidade do Caxias do Sul in Brazil in 2010. I also hold classes for Saint Mary's of California's TransGlobal Executive MBA students.

About David Victor’s Consulting Experience

I have consulted since the mid-1980’s, mostly in the area of international business communication, expatriate relocation and diversity management for a range of clients including school systems, hospital networks and city and state governments as well as a wide range of companies working domestically in the United States as well as in Canada, Mexico, East Asia and Europe. I have consulted and run programs for over 150 companies and organizations, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to the state governments of Idaho, Iowa and Michigan, the American Bar Association and the US Army as well as several city governments and health systems in the US and abroad.